NORTON, Mass. — Sophomore left fielder Kevin Matos (Lawrence, Mass.) (three) and senior third baseman Nick Croteau (Cumberland, R.I.) (two) combined to drive in five runs to lead the No. 8/11 and top-seeded Wheaton College (Mass.) baseball team over third-seeded Babson College, 7-3, in the New England Women's & Men's Athletic Conference Tournament at Sidell Stadium on the campus of host top-seeded Wheaton College in Norton, Mass.
The Lyons, who are ranked eighth in the most recent D3baseball.com national poll and 11th in the Collegiate Baseball/American Baseball Coaches Association survey, force another game vs. the Beavers, who were previously undefeated in tournament play, for the NEWMAC Championship. Wheaton has won 12 of its last 13 and 20 of its last 22 games and improves to 36-6 on the season, while the Beavers drop to 24-17. The teams will play each other again today at 1:45 p.m. at Sidell Stadium and meet for the NEWMAC crown for the first time since the Lyons defeated Babson, 10-4, on May 16, 2021.
Matos finished the game going 2-3 with a double, three RBI and a run scored, while Croteau was 2-4 with two runs batted in and a run scored for Wheaton. Senior shortstop Cavan Brady (Sheffield, Mass.) led all batters with three hits in four at-bats to go with a run scored, while senior second baseman Mike Maher (Jefferson, Mass.) was 2-3 with a double and two runs scored. Sophomore right-handed starting pitcher Jackson Walsh (Cumberland, R.I.) earned his second victory in as many games after winning in relief less than 24 hours prior to improve to 4-0 after yielding three runs on five hits and two walks in addition to a strikeout in six innings. The Wheaton bullpen combined to hurl three innings of no-hit ball, including a ninth inning that saw senior southpaw Zach Nichols (Chicopee, Mass.) strike out the side to close out the game.
Senior center fielder Patrick Manning (Weymouth, Mass.) paced Babson with a 1-3 effort, including a triple, a walk and an RBI, while junior catcher Ike Kiely (Falmouth, Maine) and graduate student Ryan Noone (Belmont, Mass.) were each 1-3 with a run scored. Senior righty Anthony St. John (Hopewell, N.J.) was tagged with the loss and fell to 5-3 after giving up six runs on 11 hits and a walk to go with a pair of strikeouts in six and a third innings pitched.
The teams traded single runs with Babson scoring in the first and the Lyons matching in the fourth. Wheaton scored three runs in the sixth, before the Beavers answered with a pair of runs in the seventh to make it 4-3. The Lyons got the runs back in the bottom of the inning to keep it a three-run game, before tacking on a single run in the eighth.
Wheaton scored three times in the bottom of the sixth to take its first lead of the tournament. The Lyons strung three straight hits together to open the inning with Croteau ripping a single to center, before Brady laced a single up the middle to send Croteau to third. Matos came through with a double to the base of the right field fence to drive in Croteau and Brady with the go-ahead runs. Matos later scored on a double-play to give Wheaton a 4-1 lead.
Babson made it a one-run game with a pair of runs in the seventh. The first four batters of the frame all reached for the Beavers, including a bases-loaded walk. Noone and Kiely registered consecutive singles to center field, before first year right fielder Ryan Hvozdovic (Hillsborough, N.J.) dumped a single into right field to load the bases with no outs. Manning worked a walk to force home Noone with Babson's second run. Junior second baseman Tanner Santos (Bethany, Conn.) pulled the Beavers within a run with a sacrifice fly to right to plate Kiely and make it 4-3.
The Lyons tacked on two insurance runs in the bottom of the seventh to take a 6-3 advantage. Junior center fielder AJ Guindon (Coventry, R.I.) laced a single up the middle, before Maher ripped a one-out double to right field to put both runners in scoring position. Croteau delivered a two-run single to right field to give Wheaton a three-run lead. The Lyons added one more run in the eighth to increase their margin to 7-3. Wheaton loaded the bases with no outs after Matos singled to center, followed by free passes issued to senior catcher Robert Wirtanen (Brentwood, N.H.) and sophomore first baseman Timmy Wagner (Hingham, Mass.). Junior right fielder Tommy Ambrosone (Hopkinton, Mass.), followed with a fielder's choice to bring home Matos with the final run of the game.
Babson cracked the scoring column with a run in the top of the first to take a 1-0 edge. Santos drew a walk to lead off the game and went to third on a single through the right side to put runners on the corners with no outs. First year first baseman Chris Basile (Miami Beach, Fla.) moved into scoring position as well on a wild pitch with no outs, but the Beavers were limited to just one run on a run-scoring ground out to third from senior left fielder Michael Cook (Whitman, Mass.).
Wheaton knotted the game at 1-1 with its first run coming in the bottom of the fourth. Maher opened the frame with an infield single to shortstop before Brady ripped a single to right field to put runners on the corners with one out. Matos lifted a fly ball to center field to plate Maher with a sacrifice fly and pull the Lyons even.